Legacy
by Swagheili
Summary: Before Noble Six was B312, she was 116. In another world, Noble Six was a Spartan-II.
1. Initiation

**_Private Journal Entry  
Encrypt Halsey 424-3  
Delete if tampered  
August 17_** ** _th_** ** _2517_**

 _Eridanus II seemed to be the eye of the storm. Insurrection stronghold, Black Market centre…and three Spartan candidates all on the same planet. Interesting. Lieutenant Jacob Keyes did not share the same sentiment when he heard about the full details of this mission. It appeared that ONI had told him nothing, yet he was smart enough to figure out the bare minimum._

 _We arrived at Luxor first._

* * *

 **Name: Dusk Legatarius  
Tag: 115  
Sex: Male  
DOB: August 8** **th** **, 2510  
Age: 7  
Home Planet: Eridanus II, Luxor  
Height: 4 feet 2 inches (127cm)  
Hair Colour: Black  
Eye Colour: Violet  
Skin: Pale  
Known medical conditions: Alexandria's Genesis**

* * *

 **Name: Dawn Legatarius  
Tag: 116  
Sex: Female  
DOB: July 3** **rd** **, 2511  
Age: 6  
Home Planet: Eridanus II, Luxor  
Height: 3 feet 11 inches (119cm)  
Hair Colour: Red  
Eye Colour: Violet  
Skin: Pale  
Known medical conditions: Alexandria's Genesis**

* * *

 _Candidate 115 and 116 were siblings born dangerously close to each other, separated by only eleven months. Not only was this supposed to be impossible, it was a miracle that both the mother and 116 survived unscathed. More unusual, was the fact that both were born with Alexandria's Genesis, a genetic disorder last documented in the 1940s. So few have ever been born with such a condition, that for many generations, scientists considered it a myth. It's understandable that many would choose to hide. Their eyes had been desirable to many on the Black Market._

 _Candidate 141 also had unique colouring, but that will be discussed in another entry._

 _115 was the eldest of all the Spartan candidates, and he had a very close bond with 116. Both were extremely capable in physical and academic activities, much like many of the other candidates. This is not surprising, considering that their father was an ex-ODST, and their mother a talented polymath. Last time I checked, Dominic Legatarius had been honourably discharged when he lost both his legs in a skirmish, and Diana Legatarius was studying nanotechnology. I wonder, would the children be just as great as their parents? It is highly possible, their DNA is rather extraordinary._

 _The Legatarius siblings were initially wary of us when we approached them at the local park, but that caution turned into curiosity when I showed them an ancient Earth coin. Getting them to play my little game was easy enough, and the results that Lieutenant Keyes recorded were more than expected. Being able to predict the fall of a coin five times in a row wasn't just luck. It was skill._

 _Both will be chosen as two of the final seventy-five._

* * *

 **Name: John  
Sex: Male  
Tag: 117  
DOB: March 7** **th** **, 2511  
Age: 6  
Home Planet: Eridanus II, Elysium City  
Height: 4 feet 1 inch (125cm)  
Hair colour: Brown  
Eye colour: Blue  
Skin: Pale, freckled  
Known medical conditions: None**

* * *

 _When we arrived at Elysium City, it wasn't hard to track down Candidate 117. Out of the original one hundred and fifty candidates, I believed that 117 was the best. Even as a child, I could see how special he was, and sensed his unformed potential. I simply needed to carve away everything else to get to it. Shape it. Form him into everything I knew that he would eventually become._

 _Unlike 115 and 116, he showed no hostility or caution when I approached him, but like any other child, he was curious. What better way than to catch his attention, then to play a game? Like the Legatarius siblings, he managed to predict all five outcomes of the coin falling. This set the standard for the rest of the candidates. 117 was also chosen as one of the final seventy-five._

 _I am simply curious, that out of the hundreds of colonies, out of the dozens of star systems, was it a coincidence that three of the chosen seventy-five were all on the same planet?_

 _We're headed back to ONI headquarters. There is much to be done._

 ** _Exit Private Journal_**

* * *

 **September 3** **rd** **2517**

Catherine Halsey stood in front of a holographic screen, blue eyes darting over the projection. Faces of children were displayed.

 ** _Candidate 034 Samuel – ACQUIRED [En route to Reach]  
Candidate 058 Linda – ACQUIRED [En route to Reach]  
Candidate 087 Kelly – ACQUIRED [En route to Reach]  
Candidate 104 Frederic – ACQUIRED [En route to Reach]  
Candidate 117 John – ACQUIRED [En route to Reach]_**

 ** _Retrieval Team Alpha – ACTIVE [Deployed to Harvest]  
Retrieval Team Beta – ACTIVE [Deployed to Verent]  
Retrieval Team Gamma – ACTIVE [Deployed to Imber]  
Retrieval Team Delta – ACTIVE [Deployed to Ballast]  
Retrieval Team Epsilon – ACTIVE [Deployed to Eridanus II {Elysium City}]  
Retrieval Team Zeta – ACTIVE [Deployed to Eridanus II {Luxor}]  
Retrieval Team Theta – STANDBY  
Retrieval Team Sigma – STANDBY  
Retrieval Team Omega – STANDBY _**

A hologram of a woman dressed in a white toga appeared next to the Doctor.

"Deja, status?" Halsey asked.

"The acquired candidates will arrive within a week," the AI answered serenely. "However, Retrieval Team Zeta has some disturbing news. They've sent us their helmet recordings."

Dr Halsey's eyebrow's furrowed in puzzlement and worry. Retrieval Team Zeta was extracting two candidates in Luxor, a place bustling with Insurrection activity. "Very well," she said. "Play the recordings."

The screen briefly switched to black, before it became a scene of the back of an extraction van.

* * *

 ** _3 Hours ago (01:30am)_**

 _Major Faison sat in the back of the van with two others. He fiddled with his rifle, bored out of his mind. The other two in the van were marines._

 _"Tell me again, why three marines and an ODST are extracting two kids like they're VIPs?" One groaned._

 _"Quit your yapping!" The marine driving snapped. "These kids_ are _VIPs! Luxor is filled with so much Innie bullshit that you can't put one foot on the ground before you're involved in a Black Market scheme. We can't get caught."_

 _"Yeah, but why do we need an ODST? Three marines can handle the job," the other whined._

 _"You don't get how ONI works do you?!" the driver spat irritated. "We're so far down the totem pole we're like dirt beneath those shiny boots of theirs. We don't get a choice. You shut up and do what they ask of you, no questions asked! Then maybe, if you're a good lad, they'll tell you a little bit of info."_

 _"I heard that Gamma Team's target lead them around in circles. Kid was so fast they would never have caught her until she came forward. She thought it was a game," The other soldier contributed._

 _"Which is why the Major is here," The driver said. "We have to bring in two of these kids. If shit hits the fan, then Major Faison is going to clean up our mess."_

 _The marine grumbled, before settling into a comfortable silence. Faison continued to clean his weapons, making the marine sitting next to him look uneasy. Under his helmet, Faison rolled his eyes. ODSTs were treated like killing machines. Just because they had a weapon in their hands didn't mean they were going to shoot it and kill everyone in sight. The two in the back with him clearly weren't disciplined._

 _The van came to halt outside an isolated dark house._

 _"We're here boys!" The driver announced. They opened the back of the van, silently hopping out. Their black clothing blended in with the dark surrounding, moonlight barely lighting the area._

 _"Do you hear that?" The driver asked._

 _The other two looked around in confusion, straining their ears. "Hear what? I don't hear anything."_

 _"Exactly," Faison said tensely, gripping his gun tightly. "No crickets, no owls. It's too quiet. Something's not right."_

 _He grabbed the door handle, looking over his shoulder at the driver, the only competent soldier that he could rely on. The driver nodded, holding his rifle at a ready position. Faison slowly turned the handle, making the door gently swing open with a soft creak. He noticed it wasn't locked. The ODST stepped inside._

 _The first thing that hit him was the stench of iron. It infiltrated his helmet, making him wrinkle his nose. The next thing he noticed was the blood smeared on the floor. He heard a sharp intake of breath from behind him, which he ignored. Faison followed the trail of blood to the body of a red-haired woman. She was laid on her back, mouth open in a frozen scream, face splattered in blood. And her eyes…_

 _"Oh my god," a young marine choked. "What did they do to her?"_

 _Where the woman's eyes used to be, were empty sockets dripping with blood._

 _"Someone harvested her eyes," the driver noted, disturbed. "Unique eyes are wanted on the Black Market. Apparently people preserve them and keep them as trophies."_

 _"Who?" the marine asked, voiced strained in repulsion._

 _"Insurrection," Faison answered, pointing to a second body mere feet away. It was a man wearing combat attire with a red fist printed on his chest. His eyes were glazed over, staring blankly at the ceiling, dead. His neck was a mess of flesh and blood. The ODST knelt down to observe the body, finding three bullets imbedded into his windpipe._

 _"There's another body over here," the driver said, standing over the corpse of a dead man. Faison followed over, stepping over other another body of an insurrectionist. The other man that the driver stood over was faced down in his own blood, with stumps for legs. A wheelchair was overturned nearby, blood coating the seat. Spotting a pair of dog tags around the corpse's neck, Faison flipped them over. Blood boiled in his veins when he recognised the flaming skull of the ODSTs. '_ Dominic Legatarius _' of the 104_ _th_ _Shock Troops Division would be avenged. Faison turned the body over gently, and closed unseeing eyes before taking the dog tags._

 _"Check all rooms," he barked. The driver nodded, gently shoving the other marines into action. They carefully treaded down a hallway, following drops of blood to a door slightly ajar. Blood was smeared the door handle, a puddle also leaking from the other side of the door. Faison cautiously pushed open the door, but shoved it harder when it didn't budge. He squeezed through the gap, to find a dead insurrectionists jamming it. Its head had been blown open, brain matter painting the walls of what appeared to be a child's bedroom._

 _No sooner did he slip completely through the gap, a crack of a gun pierced the ominous atmosphere. Faison's head was thrown back, a bullet lodged into his visor, spreading a web of cracks across his HUD. He grunted when three bullets followed in quick succession, striking him in the chest, his ODST armour protecting him._

 _Shouts of alarm rose from the other side of the door, before it was kicked down. Four rifles were raised at a M6B Handgun._

 _"What the–!"_

 _A young pale face of a six year old stared up at them. Purple eyes were narrowed in determination and fear, lips pressed tightly in a frown. Splatters of dried blood decorated her clothes. Small hands held a handgun, steadily trained on the men in the doorway._

 _"It just a kid," a marine announced, lowering his rifle._

 _"That's the girl that we were supposed to retrieve," the driver said. "There's supposed to be one more."_

 _Faison put down his rifle, and raised his hands in the air. He slowly approached the tense girl and knelt in front of her. She didn't lower her gun, its barrel aimed directly at his cracked visor._

 _"We're not going to hurt you," he told her gently. "We're from the UNSC. My name is Faison, can I have yours Miss…?"_

 _"…Dawn," the red headed child replied hesitantly. She still did not lower her gun._

 _"That's a pretty name. Do you have a sibling?" Faison slowly lowered his hands, purposely keeping them in her sight. Purple eyes darted from his hands to his covered face warily._

 _"Yes, Dusk is my big brother," she answered._

 _"Do you know where he is?" The other soldiers in the doorway lowered their weapons, but stayed near the door, content to let the ODST handle the situation._

 _"No." The barrel of the gun tipped lower. "He told me to hide while he distracted them."_

 _"Distracted who?" Faison asked, playing dumb._

 _"The bad men." The gun tipped lower. "Mum said that they found out that Dad was an ODST. They took Mum's eyes too."_

 _"How many came?" He questioned._

 _"Eight." The finger on the trigger faltered. "Three ran after Dusk."_

 _"I only counted three here," Faison said. "Where's the other two?"_

 _The gun was finally lowered, and a small finger was pointed to the left of the room, towards the window, the ODST following her gaze. The glass was smashed, a body slumped half in–half out of the sill._

 _"He tried to get me through the window, so I shot him. The other one is trying to get into the vault in the basement," She explained. Faison jerked his head at the marines, giving them a silent order. The driver nodded, herding the other two away. The Major removed his helmet, showing his face to the wary child. A sign of trust. He held out his hand to her._

 _"Would you like to come with me?" He coaxed. The red head hesitated, before placing her hand into his large one._

 _"It's not like I have anywhere else to go," She whispered bitterly. He tugged her gently, leading her through the house, covering her eyes when they passed the bodies of her parents._

 _"Who taught you how to shoot?" Faison asked curiously, as he sat her down in the back of the van._

 _"Dad did," She answered quietly._

 _A tap on the side of the van brought Faison's attention to the marine knocking._

 _"There's a live one, Sir."_

 _He stood up and followed the marine out, leaving Dawn by herself. The Major re-entered the house, stalking towards the lone insurrectionist. He was tied up on a chair and gagged, the driver standing beside him with a gun aimed at his head. The ODST leaned down ripped the gag off roughly._

 _"You are going to tell me why you attacked an ODST and his family, or I am going to stick my knife in places you don't want it to be. Am I understood?" Faison hissed, revenge and anger fresh in his mind. The bound man just smirked._

 _"You wouldn't dare. The UNSC are weak and soft. They can bluff all they want, but they never go through with their actions," he said smugly._

 _"Oh? You don't believe me?" In one smooth movement, Faison unsheathed his knife from his leg and plunged it into the man's knee. He screamed in agony, fear evident on his eyes. "Do you believe me now?"_

 _He pulled out the knife, wiping the blade on the man's pants. "You see, I'm very angry right now. One of my brothers in arms was murdered, his wife's eyes were harvested, his son missing and his daughter orphaned and alone. If you won't give me my answers…" He traced the edge of his knife along the man's jugular. "I am quite happy to persuade you," he purred. The previously smug man swallowed thickly as the knife approached his Adam's apple._

 _"You're crazy!" The insurrectionist gasped. "You're insane! Do you have no honour?! No shame?!"_

 _"More than you, that's for sure," Faison mused._

 _The two marines hurriedly left the room, the driver staying._

 _"So," the Major started cheerily. "Why did you attack an honourably discharged ODST?"_

 _The man sealed his mouth, and the knife plunged downwards into bone. Faison impatiently hissed, "Too slow! I wanted my answers yesterday!"_

 _"Charles! Charles wanted to do it!" The man screamed, resolve breaking. "He wanted to send a message to the UNSC!"_

 _"So you were cowardly enough to murder a man that could no longer defend himself?" Faison twisted the knife, making the insurrectionist howl. "That's not good enough to send eight people. Tell me more."_

 _"He also wanted the woman's eyes!" The man groaned. "We didn't know that the brats had AG as well, so Mark, Charles and Greg went after the boy."_

 _The knife was twisted again, and another scream erupted from his throat._

 _"Tell me something I don't know," Faison drawled. "You're still hiding something from me."_

 _"Colonel Watts," The man panted. "Colonel Watts wanted the research on nanotechnology from the woman. Something about nano-augmentation. I swear, that's all I know."_

 _The ODST pulled out the knife, before slicing the man's neck, ending his life swiftly. "Thank you, for your cooperation." He turned to the driver. "Get back to the van and radio an ONI retrieval team to get here. If the insurrection thinks that this nanotechnology is important, we can't let them have it."_

 _The marine saluted, before hurrying away. Faison didn't follow, having one last task to do. He trekked back to the bodies of the Legatarius couple, slipping off the golden bands on their fourth fingers and adding them to the dog tags in his pocket. The Major saluted his fallen brother, then returned to the van were the little girl and two marines sat. The driver was speaking to a radio in the front._

 _Faison sat down next to Dawn, who was blankly staring into nothingness with dead eyes. He dug his hand into his pocket taking out the dog tags and the rings, and held them in front of her face, snapping her out of her trance. The ODST dropped it into her palms, before settling in his seat. The last living Legatarius fingered the dog tags, before attaching the golden rings to the chain and slipping it over her head._

 _"Thank you," she said, purple eyes shiny with unshed tears._

 _The Major patted her head, and grunted, "No worries."_

* * *

The screen returned to its original presentation.

 ** _Candidate 115 Dusk – MIA  
Candidate 116 Dawn – ACQUIRED [En route to Reach]_**

"So the woman had Alexandria's Genesis too," Halsey muttered. "Interesting. 116 eliminated all four hostiles?"

"No," Deja replied. "Major Faison questioned her. She said that she killed two of them. The other two were killed by Dominic Legatarius before he was shot to death."

"What of 115?"

"Unknown, but the Major believes that he was killed with his eyes harvested. This leaves one more spot open in the SPARTAN-II Program," The AI pointed out. The Doctor opened a new file on the holographic screen, searching for another candidate to fill the vacant void.

"Send Retrieval Team Omega to Earth and collect Candidate 037," She said.

Deja nodded. "Understood. Relaying orders…Orders received. Retrieval Team Omega is deployed."

Halsey sighed, tiredly running a hand through her short hair.

"So, tell me about Diana Legatarius's work on nanotechnology," Halsey inquired.

"ONI Retrieval Team Seven was able to relocate Professor Legatarius's research to Reach. Analysis of data shows she was working on nano-augmentation to replace lost limbs, most likely for her husband Dominic Legatarius. Other notes suggests she was also working on artificial eyes to donate to the blind. The research is incomplete, but ONI has given you authorisation to continue her work, as it would benefit the UNSC greatly. All information has been transferred to your data pad."

Halsey snatched her tablet from her workbench, eagerly skimming through the new text. "...Optical enhancement? Cybernetic limbs? Maximum speed and strength?" She whispered in breathless awe. "Her research is decades ahead of our own! If we could use this, mankind can break our own limitations! Discharged soldiers can fight, the blind can see, there are so many things that we can do! Deja, how far into her research was Professor Legatarius?"

The AI tilted her head, scanning through hundreds of documents in milliseconds. "She spent a little under four years creating the current data found in her lab. It is estimated that she is less than halfway to completing functional limbs, and had only just started on the artificial eyes."

The Doctor hummed thoughtfully. "For the amount of research she's done, four years is pretty impressive. I wonder why ONI didn't recruit her. Deja, how long do think I will take to complete her work?"

"To my calculations, five years if focused solely on nanotechnology. Taking into account of your current workload, other projects and the SPARTAN-II Program, I estimate just over seven years. ONI wants it done by 2525. They can't guarantee the insurrection will stay as tame for much longer."

Halsey clucked her tongue. "A little bit of a squeeze, but doable. I better get started, shouldn't I?"

* * *

 **AN: Just something that popped into my head after smacking my head into the car door. Slight crossover into Dues Ex.**


	2. Training Pt1

**Unknown time and Location**

 _She could see them. The blood, the lifeless eyes, the blank accusing stares._

 _ **You could have helped.**_

 _It was different though, there was one more body._

 _ **Why did you go?**_

 _A smaller corpse was sprawled unnaturally, black hair matted with blood._

 _ **I thought we were family.**_

 _Empty eye sockets stared at her. A small pale hand reached for her._

 _ **WHY DID YOU LEAVE US BEHIND?!**_

* * *

 **Reach, Naval Officers Academy September 24th 2517**

Purple eyes snapped open, and Dawn shot up from her bunk. Her loud pants contrasted greatly to the soft snores and gentle breathing of the other seventy-four children. She calmed down her racing heart, and pushed away the thin blankets covering her sweaty skin. It had been the same nightmare over and over again for the past three weeks.

It had been a drastic change in her life. From her parents being murdered, her brother going missing (likely dead) and being inducted into some sort of secret military project.

* * *

 **Reach, Military Complex September 10th 2517**

 _Everything was blurry. A pair of hands gentle hauled her out of the Cryo-tube she had been stationed in. She coughed, feeling nauseous, the frost from her week long slumber making her skin itch. Through the haze of her dulled senses, Faison rubbed her back as her vision returned._

 _"Take it easy," he murmured soothingly. Once she recovered from her coughing fit, the ODST guided her down the ramp of the docked ship into a hangar bay. Looking around, she noticed other children being led from their own ships, some being handled more gently than others. An intimidating man stood at the end of the room, the abducted children being herded over to him._

 _"My road ends here," Faison announced quietly as he nudged her to join the growing group of children._

 _Dawn faltered in her steps. While she hadn't been with him for long, she had grown attached to her quiet guardian. "…Will I see you again?"_

 _The Major smiled sadly. "Who knows?"_

 _He ruffled her hair before softly pushing her over to the other children._

 _"Follow me trainees!" The uniformed man bellowed, and the children scrambled to do so, lest they got left behind. As he led them through the doors of the hangar bay, Dawn turned to look at Faison one last time, before he disappeared behind the closed doors._

 _The seventy-five children were led to a large amphitheatre. A woman dressed in a lab coat with short black hair stood on the stage, the man joining her on the podium. Dawn recognised her as the mysterious woman at the park, and scowled. She knew she was bad news. The woman gestured for the children to sit. The red head sat, a boy with blue eyes and brown hair sitting next to her._

 _"My name is Dr Halsey. You are hereby conscripted into UNSC special project, codenamed ORION-II, also known as SPARTAN-II," The woman started, examining the young children's behaviour. "Your parents are gone. The planet Reach is your new home. Your fellow trainees are your new family. Each of you has been hand selected and called to serve. Your bodies are already faster and stronger than other children. And we are going to make them even better."_

 _With a sharp gaze, Halsey noted the nearly indifferent expressions shown by the children. None of them were crying, just confused. She almost smiled. It seemed like the SPARTAN-II program would turn out better than its predecessor. Halsey turned to the man who had led the children into the amphitheatre. "Chief Petty Officer Mendez, escort the children to the Mess hall. Feed them, get them to bed."_

 _He nodded. "Trainees! Fall out!"_

* * *

She missed her parents.

She missed her brother.

She missed Faison.

Dawn fingered the rings around her neck. She hadn't noticed before, but inscribed on the golden bands were words. The slightly smaller ring proudly bore ' _Forever_ ', and the larger one had ' _Always_ '.

With a sigh, and a mild stinging in her eyes, Dawn dropped the rings and dressed herself in the uniform placed on the chest at the end of the bunk. The sun would be up in a few hours, so she might as well get a head start on the day.

She watched enviously as the children around her slept peacefully.

She didn't think she was going to go to sleep anymore. And quite frankly, she didn't think she wanted to.

* * *

It was the same routine again, repeated from the last two weeks ever since they had been abducted. They would be woken at sunrise, and herded outside where they would start with jumping jacks, push ups, army crawls and a run through the forest. They would then be given a small breakfast before being lead back inside a classroom where they would be taught academics. They would have lunch before going to the shooting range, then they would spar and have dinner. Some days, they would change it up.

It was one of those 'some days' when the group were lead into a warehouse. An obstacle course was built inside, which Chief Mendez had called the 'playground'. It didn't look as fun as it was supposed to sound.

"Today's mission is ring the bell," the Chief announced, gesturing to the bell hanging on the pole. "When every member of your team has rung the bell, cross this line."

A boy's hand shot up in the air.

"Question trainee?"

"What do we get if we win sir?"

In the future, Dawn would realise that this particular boy was extremely competitive.

Chief Mendez just shot him an odd look. "You win dinner 117. Last team to finish, goes without dinner." There were cries of despair. "Your teams have been arranged. Before we begin, check the list and find your teammates." He pointed over the screen on the wall as it flickered to life, names glowing on the screen.

From her spot, Dawn scanned the hologram for her name.

 **White Team  
** **Mandy-065  
** **Daniel-071  
** **Liam-076  
** **Karen -109  
** **Dawn-116**

Separating from the crowd, she looked for specific numbers printed on the chest of their black shirts. It was chaos over at the screen, a large cluster of children hovering so close to each other that it looked like a mess. From the corner of her eye, Dawn spotted Chief Mendez's face twitching as he stared at the disorganised gaggle of kids.

From the moving river of limbs, a tall black haired girl wandered over to her, eyes flickering to the number on her shirt.

"Are you Dawn?"

The girl was soft-spoken, with freckled cheeks and warm brown eyes. The red head nodded, eyes zeroing in on a white 065. "Mandy, right?"

The tall girl smiled, and joined her to watch the other children start to disperse. Three of them joined the two girls, their numbers showing exactly who they were. One of them was a brown haired girl with grey eyes, whom Dawn assumed to be Karen. A smiling blond boy held out his hand to her, blue eyes twinkling. "Hi! My name is Liam." He nudged his ginger haired friend, whose green eyes glared at him. "That's Daniel and Karen. You're Dawn and Mandy yeah?"

Both girls nodded. Purple eyes scanned the four before her. "Is it agreed that we help each other out?"

A chorus of agreements responded, and Dawn grinned. Watching the other bickering teams, she was lucky that none of her new teammates hated each other. White Team looked to be one of the only cooperative teams that would have a chance at winning.

The children lined up again, this time in their teams of five. The five shared a glance, before shooting off as Chief Mendez told them to go. The newly instated White Team sped off, leaping over boxes, and darting around obstacles. When Karen couldn't reach the mountain of crates, Daniel wordlessly hauled her up. When Liam slipped on the rope ladder, Mandy caught him before he could fall. Dawn followed behind the group, keeping an eye on her teammates and silently offering help when her team needed it. They made it up the pole, but they weren't the first to get there.

A single boy stood triumphant over the rest of the trainees, the number 117 proudly displayed on his shirt. As the rest of the trainees gathered at the top, his own team – Blue Team – didn't seem as amused with his victory.

"Hey!" The boy turned to his teammate who had just climbed up the pole. "Thanks for nothing!" The larger boy threw a punch that downed the other, a red mark blossoming on his cheek. Before he could get up, Mendez placed a heavy boot on his chest to keep him down.

"White Team wins," Chief Mendez announced, making Dawn smile and Liam fist bump Daniel. Mandy nodded serenely, as Karen beamed. "Good work trainees! Everyone gets dinner besides 117 and the rest of Blue Team."

"But I was first!" 117 insisted.

The Chief gave him a disappointed look. "You were first, but your team came in last. You don't win unless your team wins."

With that being said, Mendez walked off. Dawn saw Blue Team spit at their teammate and frowned. While 117 did leave them behind, she didn't really think that spitting on him was necessary.

"Are you coming?" Karen asked, as the rest of White Team headed off to the mess hall for dinner. Dawn glanced back at the brunette on the floor, who looked exceedingly miserable as Blue Team wandered off without him.

"You go ahead. I'll catch up," She replied, softly nudging her teammate. Karen nodded, and left. Dawn approached the boy, whose gaze was blank and lost in thought. She held out a hand to him. "Maybe you should apologise."

Blue eyes snapped up at her offered hand, and hesitantly accepted it. "Why? I was the one that got punched," he grumbled, wiping spit off his cheek.

"But you're the one that left them behind. They're just angry. Wouldn't you be too if you were abandoned?" Dawn asked, crossing her arms.

"Its just a game," he murmured, looking confused.

"It might just be a game, but it says alot about your character to just take off on your own." She retorted. She knew exactly what he was going through. Hell, her father was the one to tell the lone wolf inside of her to take a hike. Dusk had a similar earful of words before they became insperable.

"What do you think it says about me?" The boy said.

"That you're reckless, selfish and an uncooperative idiot," Dawn deadpanned without remorse. The boy flinched, as if struck.

"Is that what you really think of me? What they think of me?" He asked bitterly.

"Nope. But it would be, if it was my first impression of you."

"First impression? Have you been watching me?"

"I've been watching everyone." It was true. When she woke up from her nightmares and couldn't go back to sleep, she liked to sit on her bunk and observe her surroundings. She always did. Back on Eridanus II, Dawn made it a habit to scope out potential bullies and learned how to avoid them. Dusk had sometimes joined in on her people watching. "Besides, you sleep in the bunk next to me. I've had three weeks to figure you out, though I still don't know your name."

"Oh...My name is John. Nice to meet you…?"

"Dawn," she answered. "My name is Dawn."

* * *

Dawn had watched him apologise to his team, and grinned back at him when he discreetly turned around and gave her a thumbs up from across the mess hall (Liam – who saw their little exchange – wiggled his eyebrows at her suggestively. In which, she smacked him for).

Later that night, as she climbed into her bunk, someone tapped her on the shoulder. She jumped, spinning around. Purple eyes met blue.

"Hi," John greeted.

"John?" She asked.

He coughed, red dusting his cheeks. "I just wanted to thank you for making me apologise. It kinda cleared things over with my team, and _maybewecouldbefriends_?"

Dawn blinked. "Er...yeah, I guess."

She didn't really know what else to say to her new 'friend', so their already awkward conversation turned into an uncomforatble silence. John cleared his throat.

"So, um…where did you live before…you know…?" He waved his hand, gesturing to the building around them.

"Luxor, on Eridanus II," was her short reply. Dawn really wasn't one for small talk, and she never really had many friends. Blue eyes brightened.

"Really? I lived on Eridanus II as well, but in Elysium City," he told her excitedly. They chattered during the hour of free time before curfew , a bond from their planet connecting them(a little awkwardly at first, but gradually more comfortable as time passed).

It was said that people often gravitated to familiar concepts when dropped into the unknown. When seventy five children were taken from their homes and conscripted into a super soldier program, they were no exception to this fact.

Other groups of trainees mingled with people from familiar planets on their own bunks. Even when Chief Mendez shut the lights off and told them to sleep, the whispering did not stop as the children started reminiscing about their home worlds. Small acquaintanceships had solidified into friendships as the nights went by.

Dawn and John were not the most talkative people, but they had their fair share of storytelling. She told him stories of Dusk, and he told her tales of his mischief back on Eridanus II.

One particular recount from John's childhood had made them struggle to keep their laughter silent as the rest of the trainees dozed off. Steve-119, who was on the next bunk, grumpily told them to shut up before he strangled them.

Strangely enough, the aching hole in her heart didn't hurt as much as it used to.

* * *

 **Reach, Military Wilderness Training Preserve January 27th 2518**

"A paradrop…I don't know how to feel about that," muttered Karen as she peered out of the glass of the drop ship. When she looked down, she could see nothing but clouds. She clutched her harness with her sweaty palms, watching as the wisps of white swirled below them.

"Why? Are you scared?" Liam smirked, nudging her in the ribs with an elbow.

"No!" Karen scowled, slapping his arm away. Just as Liam opened his mouth to reply, Dawn leaned over Mandy and Daniel's laps and swatted him upside the head.

"Don't antagonise her. Do you want to be hung by your thumbs again?" The redhead asked. The blonde abruptly shut up, rubbing his fingers, remembering what Karen could do with a fishing line and a tree branch. The other trainees had sat and laughed at him as he helplessly hung by his digits, toes barely able to scrape the ground. His thumbs had never felt the same again.

Chief Mendez stepped out of the cockpit, slapping the button of the door as he passed. The hatch slid open, the wind rushing through the drop ship.

"After you drop, your objective is to retrieve a flag hidden somewhere in the forest. One flag per team," He declared over the howling wind. "You will then make your way to the camp, and await further orders." He motioned to the large map displayed on the briefing hologram. The trainees had already memorised it. A large red cross was drawn in the centre, signifying their target location.

"Get ready trainees! You're dropping in five!" Mendez barked. The children stood, lining up against the sides of the drop ship. The light above the door of the cockpit turned green, a confirmation of the drop zone as Mendez urged them along. "GO! GO! GO!"

One by one, the children dove out of the hatch, disappearing out of sight as the drop ship soared through the sky.

"I don't think I can do this," Karen gulped, as the line of children became shorter.

"Don't worry," Liam chirped cheerfully, "I mean, if you don't deploy your parachute in time the only thing that will happen to you would be that you'll break your legs or die a painful death. It's no biggie."

"Shut up! You're not helping!" And with that, she shoved him angrily. Liam stumbled, tripping and accidently shoving the person in front of him. Unfortunately for Dawn, _she_ was the person in front of him. Unprepared for the sudden push, she toppled forwards into the person who was preparing to jump. There was a disturbingly loud thud as they both fell out of the hatch in a tangle of limbs, freefalling to the earth.

Chief Mendez, who was standing near the hatch poked his head out to watch the two unfortunate trainees plummet through the sky. He shrugged, leaning back in. The ones who had witnessed the incident blinked owlishly.

"Look at what you did!"

"What _I_ did?! This is your fault!"

"Just go already!" Someone shouted from the back of the line. Seeing that the other trainees were becoming impatient, Daniel took charge by kicking Liam off the plane.

"GODAMMIT DANIEL!" The blonde screamed, his voice trailing off as the wind snatched away his words. A panicking Karen was also tossed off the ship, as she was taking too long to jump off herself. Daniel and Mandy dived after them, and the rest of the trainees followed.

* * *

The world spun around her.

All Dawn was aware of was the body that she was tangled with. The other person was limp. A head of brown hair and freckled cheeks caught her attention.

 _John._

The earth was getting closer, and they would both die if they didn't deploy their parachutes. But John wasn't moving. In fact, he wasn't even conscious. She briefly remembered that his skull had smacked into the door of the drop ship when they tumbled out of the vehicle.

Reaching up to the chest of the unconscious boy, she yanked the chord of his harness. The parachute flew out behind him, catching the air and slowing their fall so drastically that Dawn felt like her stomach went to her mouth.

She let go of him and deployed her own chute, satisfied that they both weren't going to die.

As they descended to the earth, the treetops of the forest below drew nearer, brushing the soles of her feet as the wind carried them. It blew gently across her skin as she scanned the area filled with foliage and leaves.

But alas, fate was cruel. The two trainees were close enough is that their parachutes brushed against each other, something that was extremely ill advised as they could get tangled together.

And of course, as life wasn't fair, that exact scenario happened to them.

Dawn swore as the wind picked up, making her body collide with John's, their parachutes deftly winding themselves into knots. Shoving his body away from her in order not to get glued together, their parachutes seemingly decided to deflate, sending them spinning into the branches. Dawn quickly caught herself on the higher part of a trunk, bark roughly digging into her hands.

With John out cold, luck seemed to have abandoned the both of them. Not only did their parachutes tie themselves together, the knot was hooked onto the branch of a high tree, leaving John swinging precariously among the leaves.

"At least my hands are free," Dawn sighed. She could work with that. She could untangle the parachutes and let the both of them down without killing themselves in the process.

Just as she was thinking these thoughts, the branch she was holding onto snapped. The redhead didn't have enough time to curse as gravity claimed her body, deciding that it was best to imitate Newton's cradle.

And just like two swinging balls on the cradle, they got tangled together.

"This is not good. This is _not good_ ," She muttered. Her hands were pinned to her sides, the straps of their parachutes wrapping around her arms. John's shoulder was pressed uncomfortably against her sternum, his elbow digging into her ribs.

Now that falling to a painful death wasn't as imminent as before, Dawn surveyed her surroundings. With both John and her lives on the line, she hadn't noticed that the two SPARTAN trainees were dangling directly above a pond that had been overshadowed by the long branches of the trees they were currently hanging from.

The purple eyed girl smacked John's shoulder with her forehead with a pained groan.

"For the love of-"

She yelped as they suddenly dropped half a metre or two, her harness jolting. She craned her neck, eyes locking onto the sole anchor preventing them from drowning as a tangled pair. The ropes of their parachutes were slowly slipping off the branch, hanging dangerously close to the edge.

Adding to their unfortunate situation, John chose that exact moment to wake from his forced nap. He groaned, blue eyes blarily blinking.

"What the-"

"Don't move," Dawn snapped urgently, eyes glued to their lifeline. "Don't move a bloody muscle, or _we are going to die_."

He stiffened at her command, slowly looking up, also spotting the slipping rope.

"Oh _hell_."


End file.
